As we end another wonderful week at HCH, it is hard to believe that there is only one more week before the half-term break. A sense of academic focus permeates the site at the moment as our Year 11 pupils are busy writing their exams. I wish them all the very best and applaud them for the way they have prepared themselves for these exams. I also would like to thank their teachers who have worked so hard over the past months (years) to ensure that the pupils are equipped with the knowledge and skills to achieve their highest potential. Our Year 4 pupils were also examined this week for their DELF exam and I have been informed that they all were fabulous. Thank you to Julie for her expert support.
Other highlights this week included the Evening of Arts: Ukraine Crisis Appeal Fundraiser which lasted almost four hours and included a wide array of outstanding dance, music and drama performances. I was so proud of all of the performers and reminded of how talented and creative our children are. Thank you to Jess for the hours spent curating the entire show. Thank you, too, to the Friends for helping with the planning and working during the event. So far we have raised over £2,000 and counting.
Our biggest sporting highlight of the year happened yesterday when the staff took on the Year 11 pupils in a football match, with the former winning 4-0. Sadly I was unable to join the staff team as I was speaking at a prep school but I have heard that Janak and Sam were unstoppable. I also heard that the atmosphere amongst the spectators – parents, pupils, and staff – was lovely and everyone had a great time. Thank you to Janak for organising.
Lastly, it was an honour to welcome our Chairman Aatif Hassan today, who visited HCH to speak to Year 9 on the topic of public speaking. It was fabulous for the students to receive advice from Aatif on how to speak effectively, how he prepares for speaking in public, and tips on how to allay the nerves. I am always so impressed with Aatif’s positive engagement with our young people and with his desire to give back. Thank you Aatif.
Thank you to all of you who provided feedback on the new newsletter format. We hope that it has enhanced your reading experience and is providing you with clarity about what is happening at HCH.
27th June, Year 11 leaver’s event (details to follow)
28th June, Year 13 leaver’s event (details to follow)
30th June, An Evening with Our Chairman, Aatif Hassan
6th July, Speech Day Prizegiving Ceremony
Francophonie Week
The French department is delighted to be launching the Francophonie Week on Monday 23rd May! During the week, HCH pupils will have the opportunity to discover and explore a range of French-speaking countries as well as their food specialities and culture.
Our brilliant catering team have put together a very special menu for the occasion!
Other news from across the school
Head Students
This week Amy, Nick (Interim Deputy Head Pastoral) and Katie interviewed three applicants to be our new Head Students for the next academic year. These roles are just for Year 13 and the students will be representatives of HCH at public events, lead regular school assemblies and will take on leadership roles in different areas of school life. They were so impressed with the students that they could not pick between them and have therefore decided this year to have three Head Students! So a huge congratulations to:
Zachary Armstrong – who will lead on Student Leadership and School Council
Alisha Arora – who will lead on Wellbeing and Anti-Bullying
Ash Frayn – who will lead on Community and Service
They will begin their roles from half term as we sadly say goodbye to our previous Head Students – Rumia Chowdhury and Katie Swangard. They have both been fantastic as our first HCH Head Students, and strong role models for our younger students. We wish them the best of luck for the future and thank them for all their hard work.
Years 7 & 8 – City of Tomorrow
Years 7 & 8 participated in an all day virtual workshop organised by University of Roehampton on Tuesday. The workshop asks young people to create their vision of the future, considering how we will live, work and play, surfacing the ‘invisible’ roles in tomorrow’s world. The aim of the activity is for pupils to think about the personal, local and global issues they would like to address in their ‘City of Tomorrow’ whilst connecting with and being inspired by local and global companies. The project strives to encourage ambitious learning by sharing exciting ideas of the world and build informed citizens by encouraging our children to think about what a kinder, safer, smarter City of Tomorrow looks like, taking into account sustainability and the rights and needs of others, inclusivity and accessibility, and what the impact of their choices will be in designing that City.
Community Garden and Gardening Club
It was a beautiful day in the garden on Wednesday, and an exciting gardening club too. In just a few months, we have gone from the bare bones of a garden to harvesting the most delicious radishes which the children took home for supper! We also have a huge crop of lettuce which may well find it’s way to the salad table at lunch before the end of this half term. We planted peas and the tomato seedlings which have grown from Nature Day, and planted the remaining baby sunflowers, nasturtiums and wildflower seeds over by S Block. The children finished the day by making the most brilliant scarecrows! It’s such a joy to see the garden come to life with their excitement!
A message from Libby Nicholas,
our Vice Chair of Governors
Dear Hampton Court House Parents,
I hope you are well. It has been lovely to visit Hampton Court House again this week. The Year 11 and Year 13 pupils are focused and positive during their examinations and it was a delight to see the lower years rehearse for their fundraiser on Wednesday – such talent! I continue to be hugely impressed by all that I see at Hampton Court House – it is a very special community, and the children are unique in their independence and eloquence.
I am delighted to let you know this week that Katherine Vintiner, who many of you have met over the past month, will now be Principal at Hampton Court House. This is a normal structure across Dukes schools; one that both Radnor House and Broomfield House schools have benefitted from over the past few years.
Kate is also Headteacher of Heathside School Hampstead, another school in the Dukes family. She brings a wealth of professional experience with her, having held multiple Executive Director positions spanning education, training and children’s services. She is a founding member of the Moving Education Academy Trust, the Founder of Spark London and is the Senior Advisor for the National Safeguarding Alliance. She has particular expertise in safeguarding and supporting children as they grow into robust, resilient and empowered young adults. Kate was also previously the Director of Place2Be and has extensive experience of promoting positive mental health and wellbeing in young people.
Kate has the following message for all Hampton Court House parents:
“I am absolutely delighted to join Hampton Court House as Principal and to work with Adrian and the whole school team. Having got to know Hampton Court House over the last few weeks, I have been so impressed with the enthusiasm of the students and professionalism and dedication of the staff. My role will be to support the senior leadership team and work closely with staff and parents so that we can take HCH to the next level of its excellence as a first-class school.”
Kate will be holding parent meetings over the next few weeks and will be able to answer any questions you may have; more information on this will follow shortly. She will be delighted to meet you and looks forward to getting to know you better. Kate can be reached via email at kvi@hchnet.co.uk.
Day to day nothing will change; Adrian is still Headmaster at Hampton Court House and will be the first point of contact for you. At Dukes, we are committed to providing an extraordinary education for the children in our care. Enabling and supporting our senior staff to be able to deliver on this promise is at the heart of our ethos. I hope you will join me in welcoming Kate to Hampton Court House and I look forward to seeing many of you at our summer events soon.
Very best wishes, as ever,
Libby
Wraparound care survey
We are currently exploring options for wraparound care at the beginning and end of the school day. We would be very thankful if you could take a couple of minutes to fill in this survey to help us understand your needs as parents further.
Friends of HCH Summer Fête
Once again, it was an excellent week for the Friends as we joined with the staff and catering team at school to continue planning our festivities for 19th June!
A rota will be forthcoming before the end of this half term so that those who would like to help on the day for activities (parents and pupils as well) can sign up, but in the meantime, we would like to ask for
DONATIONS of children’s clothes, toys and books, and plants.
Cakes (nut free; vegan cakes/cookies also welcome)
How you can help:
To let us know what you can bring for the cake stall, please contact us via the shared form or email friends@hchnet.co.uk. Also, if you know any vendors or would like to promote your products at a stall if you have a prize to be part of our raffle, you can enter your details on our form here. Many thanks for all the responses we have received so far; we are connecting with everyone to confirm further who kindly already signed up.
For clothes/books/toys/plants, please contact Hannah directly at hyelland.roberts@gmail.com and arrange to meet her at drop off or pick up with your donations.
Half-term coding for Dukes Club members
Does your child love gaming? Why not give them a chance to try coding arcade-style games? The Dukes Club is running some fantastic coding clubs over half term; they are a great opportunity for your children to learn how creative coding can be. Kickstart or boost your child’s coding knowledge with this engaging online coding taster day where children will learn the basics of coding, building simple arcade-style games which they can play at home in this Ultimate Activities course suitable for children aged 7-11 and exclusively available to Dukes Club members. We will be running two online sessions during the half term on 31st May 2022 and 1st June 2022.
By Elaine Halligan of the Parent Practice
6pm, Monday 23 May 2022 on Zoom
Does it drive you mad when your children don’t listen to, ignore, or defy you? Do you find yourself repeating things over and over again only to end up shouting? If so, join Elaine Halligan of the Parent Practice for this webinar on how to talk to your child so they will listen. Elaine is one of the UK’s most experienced parenting experts and has years of expertise transforming challenging children into confident and contented young people with her positive approach. Sign up now atthedukesclub.com
